American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded American Public Education (NASDAQ: APEI) from strong-buy to hold, even though the broader analyst view remains positive with six buy ratings and an average target price of about $59.13.
• APEI recently reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings of $0.94 per share on revenue of $174.74 million, and management raised its outlook for 2026.
• The stock traded around $52.91 and has been supported by other firms, including price-target increases from Truist and Barrington, while insiders have also been selling shares in recent months.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on APEI. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of American Public Education from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Griffin Securities set a $53.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Lake Street Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday. Northland Securities set a $51.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Barrington Research boosted their target price on shares of American Public Education from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $59.13.

American Public Education Stock Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:APEI opened at $52.91 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $970.37 million, a PE ratio of 27.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.46. American Public Education has a twelve month low of $25.80 and a twelve month high of $61.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company's 50 day moving average is $55.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.43.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $174.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $173.73 million. American Public Education had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 14.02%. American Public Education has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.340-0.390 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 2.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Public Education

In other American Public Education news, insider 325 Capital Llc sold 65,000 shares of American Public Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.78, for a total transaction of $3,495,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 836,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,972,664.52. The trade was a 7.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 1,100 shares of American Public Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.08, for a total transaction of $59,488.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 83,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,492,696. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 377,071 shares of company stock worth $20,753,569. Corporate insiders own 10.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of American Public Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in American Public Education by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,386 shares of the company's stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. Militia Capital Partners LP lifted its stake in American Public Education by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 7,432 shares of the company's stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in American Public Education by 40.5% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares during the period. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in American Public Education by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 12,209 shares of the company's stock valued at $482,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its stake in American Public Education by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Public Education News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting American Public Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: APEI reported Q1 earnings of $0.94 per share, well above the $0.61 consensus, and revenue also topped estimates; management raised its 2026 outlook, with Zacks noting stronger Military+ activity and Health+ enrollment helped margins. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley Financial raised its price target on APEI to $68 from $67 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling continued confidence in the company’s earnings outlook. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Northland Securities lifted its earnings estimates for APEI across 2026 and 2027, including FY2026 EPS to $2.53 from $2.35, Q2 2026 EPS to $0.37 from $0.35, and FY2027 EPS to $3.05 from $3.04, reflecting improved expectations after the earnings report. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Northland also trimmed its Q4 2026 EPS forecast to $0.81 from $0.90, but that weaker near-term view was offset by higher full-year estimates and a stronger longer-term outlook.

About American Public Education

American Public Education, Inc operates as a provider of online postsecondary education, offering degree and certificate programs through its wholly owned subsidiary, American Public University System (APUS). The company designs and delivers a broad range of undergraduate and graduate programs in fields such as business administration, information technology, criminal justice, homeland security, health sciences, and education. Its curriculum is developed to meet the needs of working adults, military personnel, veterans and civilian students seeking flexible, career-relevant learning opportunities.

APUS is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and employs a proprietary online learning platform that supports asynchronous instruction, digital course materials and interactive learning tools.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.